He is a smallt shitzu yesterday he was vomiting and then…

He is a smallt shitzu yesterday he was vomiting and then last night he started having diarrhea that's really Dark and Bloody

Veterinarian's Assistant: I'm sorry to hear that. Hopefully it didn't make a mess. Did the dog eat anything unusual?

Not that I know of and yesterday I couldn't get him to eat anything at all

Veterinarian's Assistant: OK. The Expert will know what to do. What is the dog's name and age?

Winston and we think that he is about four years old he was a puppy mill rescue almost 2 years ago

Veterinarian's Assistant: Is there anything else the Veterinarian should be aware of about Winston?

Not that I know of I've had him for almost 2 years and he has an upset stomach a lot but it's not anything like it is now it's usually he gets sick once or twice a week he always has since I've had it but it's not severe and usually I can give him a little bit of medicine or something for a sick, stomach and he's okay yesterday getting sick all day and now the diarrhea is just awful coming out of his body

I am very concerned about your pup because of his lethargy, lack of appetite, vomiting along with blood in his stools. With a history of frequent gastrointestinal upset and his lack of response to your usual help I believe that his condition has progressed or this is not his usual simple stomach upset.

There is a condition in dogs called hemorrhagic gastroenteritis. These dogs have profuse dark, jelly-clot like, bloody diarrhea. They are very sick dogs and get dehydrated quickly, so they need immediate care. Since he seems lethargic and has vomited an emergency/urgent veterinary visit is best.

There are other reasons for blood in the stools. Colitis or inflammation of the large intestine, can be due to stress, a change in diet, parasites, a viral or bacterial infection, inflammatory bowel disease or even a food allergy. Rarely a mass in the colon can be the cause, or exposure to anticoagulant rodenticides. Another possibility is an anal gland infection. These are scent glands that are located just inside the rectum and an infection can cause a bloody discharge, though should not cause loose stools, vomiting, or lethargy.

Well worth checking at least a couple fresh stool samples too as parasite eggs/cysts are shed intermittently and they may be picked up on the second sample or third test even if the first is negative.

If he had blood in his stools but still felt well otherwise there are things we can try at home. If you cannot have him seen right away you can try these too, but getting him into a clinic and on fluids and injectable antibiotics is best.

Since his appetite is off and he is vomiting he has stomach upset and reflux that can go along with bloody stools.

To try and settle his stomach today you can give either:

1) Pepcid-ac (famotidine) at a dose of one half of a 10mg tablet per 10 to 20 pounds of body weight every 12 hours.

OR

2) Prilosec (omeprazole) at a dose of one quarter of a 20mg tablet per 10 to 20 pounds of body weight every 24 hours.

These will reduce stomach acid and should help if this is related to simple nausea and gastrointestinal irritation. Either one can be given for several days if need be.

I would not feed her any food for 12-24 hours after the acid reducers are started. This should help stop gut spasms and restore normal gut motility. Small amounts of water or ice cubes given frequently are fine as he needs fluids after all that he has lost with bloody stools and vomiting. You can give him pedialyte to replace electrolytes too but Gatorade is much too high in sugar which can make colon irritation worse.

Today even with the fast if he stops vomiting you can start Kao-pectate at 1/2ml per pound or 1/2 tablespoon per 15 pounds of body weight every 8 hours. This will coat his irritated gi tract as well as absorbing bacterial toxins. You can find kao-pectate at the drug store.

If he has a tense painful abdomen, continues to vomit and have bloody diarrhea with no improvement after being on kao pectate for 24 hours, becomes very lethargic, or runs a fever greater than 103.5F then he really must be seen by a veterinarian on an emergency basis. Make sure to take a fresh stool sample with you when you go.

Once he feels better (no vomiting or bloody diarrhea for 48 hours) start mixing in his regular dog food very slowly. Less bland more regular with each day. It should take a week or so to convert him back.

Because your pup is vomiting and feeling poorly though it would be best that he see a veterinarian now as anything you give orally may just come back up worsening his dehydration.

Long term it sounds like some testing needs to be done to evaluate why he has frequent stomach upset, and perhaps a permanent diet change to a hypoallergenic diet or a low irritant diet.

Best of luck with your pup, please let me know if you have any further questions.

Hello, I wanted to make sure that you didn't have any further questions for me, and I'd like to know how things turned out for your pup. If you could give me an update that would be great, thank you, ***** *****

I will tell you that...the things you have to go through to be an Expert are quite rigorous.

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Disclaimer: Information in questions, answers, and other posts on this site ("Posts") comes from individual users, not JustAnswer; JustAnswer is not responsible for Posts. Posts are for general information, are not intended to substitute for informed professional advice (medical, legal, veterinary, financial, etc.), or to establish a professional-client relationship. The site and services are provided "as is" with no warranty or representations by JustAnswer regarding the qualifications of Experts. To see what credentials have been verified by a third-party service, please click on the "Verified" symbol in some Experts' profiles. JustAnswer is not intended or designed for EMERGENCY questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals.